Man, if 3500 to 4k rom is high then I rev the crap out of my car every single day. I cruise around town in 3rd gear all the time. lol

Same here. I like the way it sounds

I do use my lower gears for engine breaking in the snow but then immediately shift back to higher gears when I want to accelerate. I never leave it in a low gear and try to accelerate in the snow. So for example, I may downshift from 4th to 2nd to slow down and then go from 2nd to 4th/5th once I'm ready to start going again.

It actually surprises me how many people i know think going to redline in a car is "bad" for it. I know guys that have vettes that wont go over like 4k RPM (i dont think they know what theyre missing). Every time i wind one of my cars out they always say "isnt that bad for the engine."

I guess theoretically an engine may last longer never going over 4krpm, but why have the car then right?

ok if you guys are responding by saying people dont understand that redlining isnt bad. then im sorry if i wasnt clear, believe me i know this and i do my fair share of spirited driving. i was more asking if lets say you drove at 6,000 rpm in first gear for an hour, what would happen?

i know that redline isnt the true limit of the car, when you floor it the car shifts at redline so clearly thats not an issue, i was more talking about holding at a high rpm for an extended period of time.

"Engine braking passively reduces wear on brakes and helps a driver maintain control of the vehicle. Active use of engine braking (shifting into a lower gear) is advantageous when it is necessary to control speed while driving down very steep and long slopes." thats why i was in a lower gear. if you slam on your brakes in the snow you will slide but if you use the cars engine speed to slow you down it wont slide like your brakes will.

That tip is for when you are driving downhill for an extended period of time, if you then ride your brakes they might overheat and be useless when you really need them. Engine braking is also a way to keep fuel consumption low since when you are engine braking you are not burning any fuel in a direct injection engine.

But I really don't see how this translates to engine braking being better than your ABS brakes in the snow. Plus, remember to use your brakes once in a while, otherwise you might have to change them prematurely.